Israel will allow two trucks of fuel to enter Gaza daily

(Patria) - Israel says it will allow two trucks of fuel to enter the Gaza Strip daily, after pressure from
the United States, the BBC reported.

A US State Department official says about 140,000 liters of fuel will be allowed every two days. Most of it is intended for trucks delivering aid, as well as providing support to the United Nations in ensuring water and sanitation needs, the official said.

The rest is for mobile phone and internet services, which have been interrupted due to lack of fuel. On Friday, the company providing communication in Gaza said its services were returning after receiving fuel through UNRWA, the UN agency for Palestinian refugees.

A US official said Washington had exerted significant pressure on Israel to push through this agreement. The deal was reached several weeks ago, the official added, but Israel delayed it for two reasons. Israeli officials told the US that there was no shortage of fuel in southern Gaza, and they also wanted to wait and see if they could negotiate a hostage deal first.

The head of UNRWA warned on Thursday that the agency might have to suspend all its activities due to lack of fuel. In its latest situation report, the agency said it needs "160,000 liters of fuel every day for basic humanitarian operations" - more than double the agreed amount.

Earlier, an Israeli official said that a new amount of fuel would be delivered to the civilian population in the southern part of the Gaza Strip through the UN via the Rafah crossing, provided it does not reach Hamas.

An Israeli official said the fuel would provide "minimal" support to water, sewage, and sanitation systems, to prevent outbreaks of epidemics that could spread in the area.

International organizations have repeatedly expressed serious concern about the developing humanitarian situation in the Gaza Strip. The World Health Organization (WHO) had previously warned of "worrying trends" in the spread of diseases in Gaza, where fuel shortages and Israeli bombing have severely disrupted the health system and sanitation facilities.

On Friday, Richard Peeperkorn, WHO representative in the Palestinian territories, said that more than 70,000 cases of acute respiratory infections and over 44,000 cases of diarrhea had been recorded, which is significantly higher than expected.

Fuel is needed in Gaza to run desalination plants, to supply electricity to homes and hospitals, and for sanitation, transport, and communication infrastructure. It is also crucial for delivering aid across the territory. Israel is blocking the entry of fuel into Gaza, claiming that Hamas could steal it and use it for military purposes.

Before the latest war, Israel provided most of Gaza's electricity, and some was produced by the enclave's only power plant, which is no longer operational.